The Power of Optimism

Let me confess right here and now. I am a recovering negaholic; that’s right, I am a former negative person. A negative take on the world has some benefit. Being negative means you don’t take any risks, you create a buffer between yourself and others so you will not be vulnerable, you don’t have many disappointments because you have no expectations. However, being a negative person also means that co-workers shy away from you, your children will think you are an old grouch, you might not get that job promotion, or your general health, mental and physical, may suffer.

Optimism is an Attitude
Optimism is an attitude that sets us up for life success by helping us focus on what works and how we contribute to what works.  According to Martin Seligman, who pioneered much of the research on optimism, being optimistic involves how we explain the good and bad things that happen to us. When good things happen the optimist takes the credit and the pessimist considers it to be fluke or a stroke of luck. The optimist believes that good things will last whereas the pessimist believes that good things will not last.

When bad things happen the optimist believes that the situation is temporary, that the bad event is limited to a particular situation and that bad events are caused by circumstances. Pessimistic people believe that bad events are permanent and will affect all areas of their lives and they blame themselves.

Being Optimistic is About Being Real
Does that mean that optimists never get down, depressed, upset with life? Absolutely not. Being optimistic is about being real. The difference is that optimists are active and have a sense that what we do matters. In addition living life as an optimist means that we take responsibility for our actions. Just because we believe that bad events are not a result of something internally wrong with us, we do acknowledge when we have done wrong and work towards making amends. Optimism is realistic, flexible, and above all hopeful.

Optimists live a life that is driven by trust, not fear, and use reasons to objectively assess situations. We believe that we have the ability to make good things happen and we take charge and create the conditions for success. This involves personal responsibility, which means living a value-driven life. Optimists attract and are attracted to positive people and situations.

Optimists Live Longer
The power of optimism manifests itself in physical and mental health. According to the Mayo Clinic, studies show that optimists live longer than pessimists. The immune system of people who are optimistic is more effective and optimists are more likely to seek medical advice and stick to a health regime. In addition they are more likely to see support as a coping strategy which has a impact on both physical and mental health. Optimism protects against depression and we now understand that many illnesses are influenced by feelings. The relationship between stress and heart disease is well documented.

How to Boost Your Optimism

1. Be aware of self-talk
   Self-talk is an ongoing series of inner messages about yourself, others and the world around you. Pay attention to what you are saying to yourself and under what circumstances your thoughts are more negative than positive.
2. Repeat a mantra
   Choose one of your chronic negative thoughts and write down it’s opposite. Post your mantra on a sticky note and place in it a prominent place. Commit your positive thought to memory and counter your negative thought with your positive mantra. You can also use a cue, like the phone ringing or looking at your watch, to remind you to repeat your positive mantra.
   
3. Be grateful
   Take a few minutes at the end of the day to list three things that you are grateful for.
4. Visualize
   Visualization is a form a meditation that involves using your imagination to change how you feel. Choose a situation where you would like to act with confidence, sit in a comfortable chair, and picture yourself acting with confidence.
5. Create abundance
   Abundance is being satisfied with what you have while envisioning what you want. Collect images from magazines that represent what you want more of if your life: a relationship, a better self-image, anew job, a home, travel, etc. Create a collage on poster board using your images and put your collage in a room where you will see it often.
6. Look for laughter
   You can incorporate laughter into your day by actively seeking out humour. What tickles your funny bone? Old movies? Stand-up comedy? Indulge yourself and share the laugher.
7. Manage stress
   There’s nothing like too much stress to put you in a bad mood.  Managing your stress can go a long way to improving your attitude. Regular exercise, a healthy diet, and enough sleep are three good ways to manage stress.

Plug into the power of optimism and light up your life, improve your health and create happiness for yourself and those around you.

Counselling by telephone: Phone counselling for stress, anger, burnout and grief is available throughout Canada, including British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador.

Did you know?

• That forty-three percent of all adults suffer adverse health effects from stress?
• That stress is linked to the six leading causes of death – heart disease, cancer, lung ailments, accidents, cirrhosis of the liver, and suicide?
• That approximately eighty percent of all physician office visits are for stress-related ailments and complaints? (American Medical Association).

When we don’t manage our stress effectively we are at risk for burnout. Burnout is the ultimate stress reaction and occurs when the stressors are greater than our capacity to cope. Typically the term burnout is used in relation to the work place, however burnout can also happen in our personal lives. For example, people who are caregivers for elderly parents or a sick child are often at risk for burnout.

The stages of burnout are analogous to first, second and third degree burns.

First degree burnout:
One of the first signs of burnout is disillusionment with your work. Your job, career or business does not satisfy you as it once did. You respond by working harder which results in exhaustion, boredom and frustration. You question your competence and lose confidence in your ability to do your job.

Second degree burnout:
You experience chronic fatigue, physical pain and irritability. You either sleep too much or not enough and/or may start to use drugs and/or alcohol as a way to help you cope. You become indecisive and there may be negative feedback from co-workers or your employer. As you question the meaning of your work, low-level depression sets in.

Third degree burnout:
This is the final stage of burnout with despair and physical exhaustion being the dominant features. You may have difficulty getting out of bed and feel completely overwhelmed. A deep-seated sense of failure and a paralyzing pessimism about the future sets in. You struggle with depression and may even have thoughts of suicide.

If you are in the first degree burnout phase your risk for proceeding to third degree burnout is low and you should focus on managing your stress and preventing further burnout. If you recognize yourself in the second degree burnout phase you should develop a plan to correct your problem areas. Third degree burnout usually requires the help of a qualified professional in the area of stress and burnout who can work with you to improve your emotional and physical well-being.

Stress Management and Burnout Prevention:

Managing stress and preventing burnout requires making some changes in how you live your life. Here is a list of some effective techniques you can use to manage your stress and prevent burnout.

Focus on planning your life, not your time.
Evaluate all your activities, even the most trivial, to determine whether they add to your life. If they don’t, get rid of them.

Learn to say no.
Decide what you can do, what you must do, what you want to do and then delegate the rest. Before you take on new responsibilities, finish or drop an old one.

Schedule time just for yourself.
Find time each day for quiet thinking, reading, exercising, or activities that you enjoy. This time is crucial to your well-being and contrary to popular opinion, is highly productive.

Learn to meditate.
Meditation is an effective way for you to manage your stress. Meditation generally focuses on deep breathing which allows tension to leave the body. There is no right way to meditate; anyone can learn.

Go for a therapeutic massage regularly.
Massage is an excellent means of relaxation and self-care. Massage boosts the immune system, relieves stress and enhances general well-being.

Maintain your network of friends and family.
Friends are vital to our mental health. Connecting with people who are positive and enthusiastic renews optimism and hope. Friends can also help us to be accountable when we strive to make changes in the way we live.

Develop a hearty laugh.
There is a direct link between laughter and general health. Learn to differentiate between what is serious and what is not. Spend time with people who are funny and make you laugh.

It is much easier to prevent burnout than it is to recover from it. Heed the warning signs and learn to manage your stress before your stress manages you!

Lucy MacDonald, M.Ed. offers counselling by phone throughout Canada, for stress management and burnout prevention and recovery.

Canadians are stressed! According to a study released by the Canadian Mental Health Association and Desjardins Financial Security, 83% of Canadians say they have gone to work while they were sick or exhausted and they’ve done on average six times within the last year.

The Conference Board of Canda shows that stressed workers are absent from work twice as often as those with little stress.

The cost to the Canadian economy is in the billions – thirty billion to be exact. Participants in the study beleive that stress-related mental-health problems such as burnout, anxiety, and depression have increased over the years. Mental health claims, especially claims related to depression, are the fastest growing sector of work days lost due to diability.

According to the CMHA press release, “The silence surrounding mental health in the workplace is particularly alarming considering how prevalent the issue is at work. Approximately 43% of Canadians have had a colleague who has had a mental health issue and 34% have had a co-worker leave work for a period of time because of a mental health issue. Interestingly, 26% of those respondents noted that their colleague never came back to work.”

This study was released as part of National Health Week (May 7 – 13).

Many Canadian workers say workplace stress has negatively affected them physically or psychologically, with one in five claiming it has limited their careers, according to survey results released Monday.

“The good news is, you can learn or improve your emotional skills … even in the presence of stress,” said Steven Stein, a clinical psychologist and president and CEO of Multi-Health Systems. “If individuals monitor and interpret their emotions and the emotions of others, then apply that knowledge to better succeed in dealing with the world around them, they have a better chance of experiencing workplace success.”

“A strong emotional intelligence can help build positive relationships with colleagues and improve performance — the ideal formula for workplace success,” the report added.

From article Employees can learn to tame workplace stress: report. Eric Beauchesne, CanWest News Service, Published: Monday, July 23, 200

Counselling by phone

Is telephone counselling effective?

The Journal of Workplace Behavioral Health (Vol 22, Issue 4, 2008) reports data from an anger management program for referred employees at multiple geographical locations. It consisted of a telephone-based, manualized, 6-session, group intervention. The treatment was based on the concept of stress inoculation training (Meichenbaum & Novaco, 1978) and focused on (1) developing coping skills through cognitive preparation, skill acquisition, and application training, combined with (2) relaxation training and (3) rehearsal.

Data, collected on 59 participants, consisted of pre- and post-treatment scores on the Anger-Hostility and Interpersonal Sensitivity scales of the SCL-90-R. Results showed statistically significant improvements on both scales. Supervisors’ ratings reflected improvement in job status, angry incidents, productivity, and ability to get along with others.

photo by Free Stock Images